The review will determine the shape and size of British armed forces for the next generation
The crucial review of the UK's defence and security needs is being rushed through without sufficient consultation with industry and the public, MPs say.

Seems to me some have this Idea that conservatives are pro forces History teaches us that is untrue. you dont have to look too far back to see how much a tory goverment is bad news for The armed forces.

I could have thrown something at the telly last night after listening to some Labour MP spouting on how rushing the review was going to have a damaging effect on industry. Not a mention of what effect the review might have on the defence of our country. Throwing cash at British (foreign owned) companies and going over budget and over time when there is cheaper and better on the shelf is one of the main causes of waste. Search any name on DII and see how many civvy defence industry agency punters come up. FORKING GRAVY TRAIN.

I find the idea of a Strategic Review without a strategy strangely puzzling. The defence is being treated as some sort of optional nice-to-have extra instead of the main reason citizens agree to have a centralised government. Unless of course the strategy is to assume someone else will want to defend us instead.

I could have thrown something at the telly last night after listening to some Labour MP spouting on how rushing the review was going to have a damaging effect on industry. Not a mention of what effect the review might have on the defence of our country. Throwing cash at British (foreign owned) companies and going over budget and over time when there is cheaper and better on the shelf is one of the main causes of waste. Search any name on DII and see how many civvy defence industry agency punters come up. FORKING GRAVY TRAIN.

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I'd have been more annoyed at the hypocrisy of a Labour MP's puking kant blaming a new Government for cuts to defence after 13 years of lying from the last regime and blank refusal to fund defence

Disappointing that Osbourne is too weak to confront the Brownite culture and agenda at the Treasury - about time he grew a pair and started implementing Conservative priorities.

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Apart from gorgeous George dumping the Trident renewal onto the MOD budget he seems to following the goals laid out in the manifesto as faithfully as could be expected. The most salient part as I recall was public spending cuts averaging out at 25% across all departments, with a completely unrealistic goal of eliminating the deficit by 2015, something only achievable by a massive and for the Tories politically suicidal hike in taxes.

Tucked away at the back behind all the Big Society guff, NHS/Pensioner coddling and Eco babble the defense section made a QDR a requirement, ominously only promised to protect the defense budget in the short term and emphasized great savings would be made in procurement, given the Tories historic record of pork fueled procurement boondoggles combined with stealthy force reductions you'd have to be a pretty slow critter to think the army was going to get off lightly.

These have not always been pro-Armed Forces though, and it looks like this is yet another time when the Tories are going to maul the Armed Froces.

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Very much agree.

In the '60s/'70s it was generally recognised that the Tories would shaft HM Forces more than Labour.

I believe the rationale was that the Tories thought the Services were Tory so would accept whatever they were given, whilst Labour also reckoned the Services were Tory so did a lot more to win them over.

Having said that neither party covered itself in glory when in the '70s, some 35% of married soldiers qualified for what was then known as Supplementary Benefit.